How do I make my video go viral? This is a question I get asked often. It’s as if there’s a magic formula, out there somewhere, that can be applied to any video to make this possible. There isn’t one.
Want your video to be seen by millions of viewers? Create something that makes it hard for viewers not to share it. If you’re not a mainstream icon with a fan base eagerly waiting for your next visual, you better take the time to create something irresistibly buzz-worthy.
Before you finish your next video, think; Will this video entice the viewer to share it with his friends? Is there an element or scene in the video that compels the viewer to watch it again?
If the answers to either of these questions are no, then you don’t have a viral worthy video. And no amount of Facebook postings or Twitter spamming will change that reality. If you’re fortunate enough to get a video shot to one of your songs, here are a couple of tips to consider, if you want to create one that’s hard to forget.
Concept:
Having a good concept or story to tell, helps the viewer become more engaged with the visual imagery of your video and how it connects to your music. Performance videos can sometimes be entertaining, but if you create a video that only features you performing the lyrics to your song, don’t expected it to spread very far.
Oftentimes the director shooting your video has a some great ideas and experience with creating concepts, so is good to work with him or her on developing one that will make your video interesting.
Shock value:
You’re competing for attention with many other artists and other forms of entertainment. What will people remember about your video after viewing it? It doesn’t take a big budget or a bunch of props to create a video that people can’t help but talk about. Adding something surprisingly shocking or funny to your video will definitely help it go viral.
A video’s virality is not determined by how much money you spend on it, buying Youtube views, or how many half-naked strippers you cast in it. You need creative ideas. Make a list of videos you’ve seen lately that you can’t forget about, and study them to find out which elements made them stick with with you. You want to create the kind of video that promotes itself. People are annoyed by aggressive promotion. They’d rather discover your video through a friend. If you have to repeatedly post the same video day after day, on your Facebook timeline, to the same bunch of friends, to make them pay attention, you have to go back to the drawing board.
Videos are potentially a very powerful way to spread your music, image, and message. No amount of promotion will make a boring video interesting. Don’t make the mistake of putting more time and effort in the promotion of your product and not enough in the quality and creativity of the product itself.
